The present invention relates to a broadcast transmitting apparatus, a receiving apparatus, a broadcast transmitting method and a receiving method for a broadcasting system, in which a receiving side stores and reproduces the programs sent from a transmitting side. Particularly, this invention relates to the broadcast transmitting and the receiving apparatuses and methods of a system for enabling a transmitter to control the storing and the reproducing activities of a receiver.
Recently, with the advancement in communication technology and data processing technology, multimedia information such as audio information and visual information has come to be presented to the user in digital form, and as a result of introduction of memory medium with large capacity, it is going to realize a broadcasting system capable of transmitting a huge quantity of data by using broadcasting or communication equipment, receiving and storing in a terminal device at user side, and viewing at a desired timing.
Such broadcasting system is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-open Patent No. 9-135391. In this broadcasting system, after a highlight scene of a broadcast program is transmitted, segment information relating to the highlight scene is transmitted as additional information simultaneously with the live broadcast program. The receiving apparatus always stores the live broadcast program in a storing device, and when the segment information indicating the segment of highlight scene is detected, only the corresponding highlight scene is re-stored from the broadcast programs in the storing device. Thus, the re-stored highlight scene can be reproduced and viewed whenever desired.
In the broadcasting system disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent No. 10-304321, a broadcast transmitting apparatus transmits a broadcast program and additional information at the same time, and a receiving apparatus stores the broadcast program and the additional information together. In this system, with an instruction from the viewer, information about the broadcast program can be viewed from the receiving apparatus, the broadcast program can be viewed repeatedly, and other varied and efficient viewing services are available such as shortened viewing and variable viewing.
In these broadcasting systems, the transmitting side send parameter as additional information processable by a program prepared in a receiving apparatus together with broadcast programs., Then the receiving apparatus stores the data and executes the program. In this system, the viewer has controls over the program, and the service according to the preference of the viewer can be presented. It is therefore difficult for the transmitting side to control the program and to present the broadcast program service suited on the basis of their intent.
Hence an object of the invention is to present a broadcast transmitting apparatus and a receiving apparatus in which a transmitting side(party) has a control for such activities as transmitting AV data using the transmitting apparatus, storing the AV data in the receiving apparatus and executing various broadcast services at the receiving side by using the stored AV data.
The broadcast transmitting apparatus comprises means for storing and managing AV data including video or audio, and its attribute for managing the AV data, means for managing the on-air schedule, means for creating reference information, and means for storing and managing the reference information. The AV data and the reference information are transmitted. The reference information creating means reads the attribute data of the AV data from the AV data storing and managing means, and reads the schedule information from the schedule managing means, then creates the AV data storing control information showing the processing and controlling method when storing the received AV data in a receiving apparatus, and creates the AV data storing management information showing the management information when storing the AV data at the receiving side.
The transmitting apparatus further comprises application information creating means for creating application information showing how to use the AV data in the service application for executing the broadcast program service from the reference information, and application information storing and managing means for storing and managing the application information and controlling its transmission. It moreover comprises service application storing and managing means for storing and managing the service application and controlling its transmission, and transmitting means for transmitting the application information issued from the application information storing and managing means and the service application issued from the service application storing and managing means.
The broadcast receiving apparatus comprises receiving means for receiving a broadcast program, separating the program, and extracting AV data and reference information, AV decoding means for taking the AV data into an inner buffer and decoding the AV data therein, AV reproducing means for reproducing the AV data, reference information processing means for controlling AV data storing according to the storing control information of the reference information, and AV data storing and managing means for storing and managing the AV data together with the storing management information of the reference information.
In this constitution, the broadcast transmitting apparatus creates information for managing the AV data of broadcast program to be stored in the broadcast receiving apparatus, broadcasts together with AV data, and stores the AV data in the broadcast receiving apparatus according to the schedule of broadcast program.
The broadcast transmitting apparatus further creates application information from the reference information being stored and managed, and transmits the application information together with the service application for executing the broadcast program service. Receiving them, the broadcast receiving apparatus extracts the corresponding AV data from the AV data being stored and managed according to the application information, and executes the service application. In this way, the transmitting side have control over the receiving side to present the broadcast program to meet the transmitter""s intention.